Page 120

December 2015 marked a historical moment for humankind: the world unanimously agreed to change course and transition to a low-carbon world. The objective for tackling the climate challenge is now clearer than ever: we must do everything we can to reduce emissions and remain under the 2-degree limit. Before 2015, high-level climate conversations were about solidifying the blueprints and building the foundation for a more sustainable world. 2016 and beyond must be about taking action.Businesses are already leading the way. Through the Low Carbon Technology Partnerships Initiative, over 170 companies and 80 partners have come together to deliver the low carbon economy. Taken together, their efforts could contribute 65 per cent of the emissions reductions necessary for getting the world to a 2°C pathway, while injecting trillions into the low carbon economy and supporting millions of jobs worldwide (PwC LCTPi Impact Analysis Report, 2015). Business has been able to move ahead because the Paris Agreement has given us a clear framework. We owe it to ourselves and to future generations to go even further. With this in mind, annual UNFCCC COPs need to move from setting ambition to ensuring successful implementation. How can we best do this post-Paris? 1. We need to create accountability around our Paris promisesAgreements are empty words unless accompanied by action. How can we be sure that we are moving in the right direction if we don’t share our action plans or are not transparent about our successes and setbacks? This is the only way we can hold each other accountable.By sharing progress and being forthright about our efforts, we can move steadily forward in our plans to halt the onset of climate change. COP meetings of the future should be places where country leaders, businesses, policymakers and members of civil society can report on their efforts, take suggestions and learn lessons from their peers around the world. 2. We must strive to bring all actors on boardWe will not achieve the scale of change needed to meet the Paris Agreement unless we have participation from every sector of society. From this point forward, every COP event should be all-inclusive and multifaceted. The world cannot afford to overlook the COP process as an opportunity for businesses and policy makers to make sure their efforts are aligned and effective.Government needs implementation partners, like businesses, to deliver solutions on the ground, and policymakers/negotiators should capitalize on business’s enthusiasm and global reach. COP is a great place to connect these dots. 3. We must make sure that all work on climate – whether by state or non-state actors – is useful and embedded at the national level PETER BAKKER, PRESIDENT AND CEO, THE WORLD BUSINESS COUNCIL FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (WBCSD)FROM AMBITION TO IMPLEMENATION“TOGETHER, WE ARE WILLING TO DO WHATEVER WE CAN TO ENSURE THAT CLIMATE ACTION BECOMES THE NORM – FOR BUSINESS, GOVERNMENT, AND EVERYONE INVOLVED ”“We have spent years creating a new vision and now, I argue, we have to work two or three times as hard to make the new reality as laudable as the vision we created. That is going to be much harder.” Christiana Figueres, Former UNFCCC Executive Secretary, on the Paris Agreement.120 SUMMATION